Five individuals have been charged with attempting to bribe a juror with $120,000 in cash to influence the outcome of a federal pandemic fraud trial in Minneapolis. The 23-year-old juror, who has not been named, reported receiving a gift bag filled with cash during the trial’s closing days.

“This is stuff that happens in mob movies,” remarked Assistant US Attorney Joseph Thompson after the bribery attempt was uncovered earlier this month.

Prosecutors have accused 70 people of embezzling $250 million from federal food programs during the Covid-19 pandemic. Among those charged with bribery are three defendants from the initial trial, who allegedly created fake identities and fraudulent documents to siphon millions of dollars from the food-aid program.

The charged individuals include Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, Said Shafii Farah, Abdulkarim Shafii Farah, and Ladan Mohamed Ali. They face charges of conspiracy to bribe a juror, bribery of a juror, and corruptly influencing a juror.

US Attorney Andrew Luger described the bribery attempt as a “chilling attack on our justice system” and praised the juror for her integrity. “I am grateful the juror could not be bought,” he said.

Prosecutors allege the group targeted the juror because she was the youngest on the panel and the only juror of color, believing she would be more susceptible to their scheme.

The trial involved the theft of over $40 million by employees of Feeding Our Future, a now-defunct charity that misappropriated funds intended to feed hungry children. Earlier this month, the jury convicted five defendants and acquitted two others in the embezzlement case.

According to prosecutors, Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, and Said Shafii Farah hoped the juror would persuade the panel that the prosecution was racially motivated. They reportedly crafted an instruction manual to manipulate the jury, with messages like: “We are immigrants. They don’t respect or care about us.”

Ladan Mohamed Ali, who was not initially charged in the fraud case, allegedly flew from Seattle to Minneapolis on May 30 to track the juror’s movements. On June 2, she and another defendant visited the juror’s home and gave cash to a relative, promising more money if she convinced fellow jurors to acquit the defendants.

Bribing a juror is a felony that carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison. This case marks Minnesota’s first criminal prosecution for attempting to bribe a federal juror.